1995 Buick Park Avenue not starting

[mikemoewill]

While driving my park ave one night my brake light kept coming on then cutting off while i was driving. the next day I tried to start the vehicle but nothing happened. nothing as in all the power came on, the radio, lights, every thing, the car just would not start. when i went to start the car nothing happened the vehicle didn't attempt the turn over start or anything. I wanted to know where to to find ignition diagrams to find if there are more than just the fuse under the dash board for this car, or if any one had any suggestions.
-thanks for your time and consideration

[aarcuda]

have you tried charging the battery or jumping the starter solnoid to see if it kicks? might be a bad starter or low battery or start/nuetral switch.

[mikemoewill]

The battery is brand new plus all power works fine in car. I am unsure how to jump the starter solnoid. Where is the start/nuetral switch, is that the ignition switch, and if so where is it?

[aarcuda]

Always remember, just because a battery is new, doesnt mean it cant go bad prematurely. Also, just because the lights on the dash go on, doesnt mean theres enough juice to run the starter (it takes some omph to turn the motor over.

Im not saying that it is the battery, just that it might be. Try turning the lights on and trying to crank it, if the lights dim, theres not enough juice to turn it over. if they stay bright as day, theres an electrical problem keeping the juice from the starter (maybe start/nuetral switch- I'm not sure where its located)

As for jumping the starter, usually, starters have 2 connerctions on them. a heavy duty connection that goes straight to the battery (remember, it needs a lot of juice) and a smaller one which goes to the starter circuit. if you short those 2 together, it will pull in the starter solenoid and let the juice turn the starter over.

If you do this and it starts or turns over, you have enough juice but the starter circuit is open. if nothing happens, you might have a bad starter or bad battery or bad cabling.

If i remember, I'll check my service manual to see what the starter circuit looks like and get back to you on monday

[mikemoewill]

Sorry I have not replied in such a long time. Been very busy. This past weekend I finally got back under the hood and shorted the starter. The car started to turn but would not stay on. So I think the starter is good and I had another car supplying the juice to the battery. So do you think the ignition switch is the problem?

[CrispyJo]

That little resistor chip in your key is an anti-theft device. A hot wire to the starter solenoid will not start the engine if the lock can't read the chip. Likewise messing with starter/ignition will activate a 10 minute time delay that will prevent the car from starting even if you put the right key in. (that prevents someone with a batch of keys from randomly finding one that might start your car). I would guess (purely a guess), that the brake light and the not starting are not related. The only possiable way would be if the brake light came on while the car was not on and ran your new battery down enough to keep it from turning over. Because you did get the starter to turn the motor by "shorting the starter", I think your problem is in the ignition. Did you have your key in the ignition and in the ON position when you shorted between the solenoid and battery cable? Is there dirt or oil build up on the contacts in the lock? Was the gear shift fully in Park? Those are the cheap things to check. If you have a bad ingition switch, it just about takes a fully trained locksmith to get it out. If it the nutral interlock switch, a good mechinic can change that in less than an hour. Good luck.

[mikemoewill]

When I shorted the starter I had the key in the on position and then tried it in the start position. The car tried to over turn on both, but when in the start position it was more successful. The switch that I think may be bad is the ignition switch on the bottom of the steering column, I just don't know what the symptoms of a bad switch are.